Smart Tests: Teacher-made Tests That Help Students Learn,

Lori A. Dunn is an ESL teacher, instructional designer, and freelance
writer in New Westminster.

Walker and Schmidt begin this book with an analysis of a smart test,
followed by guidelines for developing such tests. They include a
discussion on identifying learning outcomes, integrating the various
cognitive skills, and prioritizing the importance of the information
included in the test to the students.

Of special merit is the section “Create Good Test Questions,” which
outlines the essential elements of a good question (fairness, validity,
and reliability) and gives examples of the basic test question styles.

The section on building extra support into the test is also clear and
admirable. The philosophy here is to free up the students to be able to
“concentrate on the higher-level task of demonstrating their
understanding” by doing such things as offering hints when asking for
explanations, adding memory cues, linking different kinds of
information, and making tasks personally relevant.

Smart Tests is a highly practical book, with a chapter on using visual
organizers such as Venn diagrams, top–10 lists, discussion webs, and
linear flow charts. To kick-start the test creation process, the authors
include a bank of question types to use, with cross-disciplinary
examples. A chapter on helping students prepare for tests is also
included, with study trick handouts, information on helping students
with test fears, and worksheets for the parents to fill out at home.
This book is a great resource.